Rank adds community savings and payroll products in Nigeria

Rank, the Nigerian fintech formerly known as Moni, has expanded its product offering with three new financial services. The products are built around one of Africa’s oldest financial systems: community savings groups. The company has launched Money Circles, Tribe and Rank Perks in Nigeria. The aim is to bring informal savings and borrowing groups onto a digital platform without changing how communities already manage their money. Many small businesses and individuals still struggle to access formal credit. As a result, community finance remains an important source of funding.

Bringing familiar savings groups online

In Nigeria, rotating savings groups such as ajo and esusu are a familiar way to save money or raise capital. Members contribute regularly, and each person receives the pooled funds when it is their turn. Money Circles follows the same model in a digital format. Users join a savings group, make contributions through the platform and receive payouts according to the group’s schedule. Rank says members will still receive their payout if another participant misses a contribution. A service fee applies, depending on when users receive their funds.

Products for communities and workplaces

The second product, Tribe, is aimed at people who already manage money together. That includes families, cooperatives, friends and workplace groups. Members can track contributions, monitor payouts and manage shared financial goals in one place. Rank Perks is designed for employers. It gives businesses a way to offer salary-backed loans and workplace savings circles. Repayments and savings contributions are deducted directly from employees’ salaries. Rank has also introduced transaction accounts, digital payment handles, and both fixed and flexible savings options.

Building on recent acquisitions

The launch follows Rank’s acquisition of group savings platform AjoMoney and Zazzau Microfinance Bank, now renamed Rank Microfinance Bank. Those acquisitions gave the company a banking licence. They also expanded its business beyond lending into savings, payments and other financial services. According to Rank, more than $100 million has been paid out to users across its various communities over the past year. Nigeria already has several established digital savings platforms, including PiggyVest and Cowrywise. Most focus on helping individuals save and invest. Rank is taking a different approach. It is building products around community finance rather than individual saving. The company is betting that moving familiar savings groups onto a digital platform will appeal to users who already trust the model but want a simpler way to manage it.